Chapter 4

                                                        Xavier

I clench my fist as I walk away; that witch has some nerve. My mate? What a joke? My mate was prophesied. I am destined to be with Keira to rule with her by my side. Yet I cannot deny that I feel the need to protect the witch; my wolf form has claimed her. It forced me to run to her when she fainted today.

"Silas," I call my wolf within. I know he is lurking in my consciousness, but he does not speak.

"Silas, "I call again, but he remains silent.

" Silas, I am your master; answer me!"

"Yes," His voice finally sounds in my head.

"The witch, why did you want me to protect her?"

"She is your queen, my Luna, as apart of you as I am." I grit my teeth. What does he mean she is apart of me.

"The witch is nothing to me; you do not get to chose my queen; I choose, and it will not be that witch."He does not respond, and I feel his presence fade. I growl; he will listen to me; he will submit to me. I am the alpha.

" Xavier." I stop and spin of his annoying voice. "Rough day? I saw you getting real chummy with that witch."Jay, a beta initially from Keira's pack, was sent with the peace treaty. He does not like me, but I have no desire to be liked.

"Where is my uncle?" I ask, ignoring his question as he approaches me.

" What? No answer, come on, you should share some of the witch with us; I bet she tastes delicious. I grab him by the throat and push him against the wall before he can finish talking. Silas growls

" I won't ask again, my uncle. He tries to clutch his throat as he struggles to breathe, but I grip him tighter; he stops fighting and points upstairs. I lift him, throw him down the staircase, and then make my way upstairs without looking back. My uncle has been the Alpha of the pack since my parents died. I am to become alpha when I turn 18 and join with my Luna under the purple moon. My parents were both from the Alpha bloodline and gave birth to me; they were killed by witches when I was eleven years old. I hate witches; my Luna will not be a witch. I walk up to the door and kick it open, and walk-in.

"Xavier, you know you should knock." My uncle says as I make my way over to him. He is sitting behind his desk.  

"Knock? In my own house, why?" He sighs as I grab a few files on his desk and shuffle through them—information on other packs' movement and our business dealings. We own the largest brewery in the state, which has been in the family for generations. I know I will have to learn all of this later, but right now, I'm only concerned about becoming alpha and not having that witch as my mate. 

" Xav, how can you be a good leader if you are this arrogant" I frown as I put the files back on his desk. 

" I will lead because it is what I was born to do. My mother was a leader, and so was my father."

"Your birthright does not make you a good leader."

"Do not question me!" I grit my teeth, he sighs.

"Why are you here?"

"The Sutherland witch."

"What about them? We are allies..." he begins, but who cares if they are allies. 

"Elina Sutherland asked if she was my mate." I quickly interject, scanning his face for a reaction but find none.

"Did she now?" he mumbles as he shuffles through papers.

" She did. Do you know anything about that uncle?

" I do not," he responds. I grit my teeth and growl. 

" You better not be lying. I will never acknowledge that witch as my mate. Keira is my mate, the prophecy said..."

"Prophesy, what prophesy? Keira was chosen as your mate because the death of your parents left us vulnerable. We needed the alliance to regain our strength, their pack provided that. We have regained our strength that alliance is no longer necessary. I stare at him incredulously as anger surges through me. 

"You all lied to me!"I walk over to the wall and punch it, causing a slight shake through the house. They've been lying to me; I'm not destined to be with Keira. I don't know how to feel. 

"We did it to protect you. You are old enough to learn the truth. The silver moon goddess has already selected your mate, and I pray it is not Keira." I frown; my uncle has never liked Keira for his own reasons. However, whether the prophecy is true or a lie, she is the only one I love and will be my mate when the time comes.

"Then is the witch?"

" I do not believe she is your mate."

" My wolf calls her his Luna." I frown, not receiving the answers I am looking for.

"Wolves desire a strong mate, so he probably values her strength."

"Why her, why a witch? Keira is strong."

"Keira is a beta and the town slut. I have meant to talk to you about her. I growl as my anger pumps through my veins.

" Do not speak about her like that; she will be my mate. I do not care what you or Silas thinks; I am the alpha!"

"Then you need to conquer your wolf; you are his master. You need to assert dominance and lead." I frown. I know what he speaks is the truth, but he has lied to me once; I can no longer trust his words.

" She's having dreams about me, in her dreams, I claim her as mine, uncle I will forgive you once for lying to me. I will not forgive you a second time."

"In two weeks, you will know your mate. If it is destiny that she will be, there is nothing you can do."

"I will not mate with a witch."

" You know what happens to a werewolf in our pack who rejects his mate.

"Yes, I know all about that curse. A blessing from those beloved witches long ago, and yet you want me to mate with one. Never! I will never touch a witch."I storm out of his office, anger pumping through my veins. I don't care if the moon goddess wants or chose a witch who will never walk beside me as my queen.

Silas whimpers and whines. 

"No! I chose!" I yell, which makes him stop, and  I no longer feel him. I will assert dominance; he will follow my lead.

                                                     ******

I open my eyes; I'm standing before my house. Elina's mother and grandmother get out of a car; they run-up to my house and close the door. I hear terrible screaming, then a little girl runs out of the car and runs into someone. Me? The face looks like me, but it isn't me, Silas. He grips her hands; she throws him off and runs to the door. Silas gets up, turns his face to me, walks to me slowly, and grabs my hand. We become one; I walk back to the house, unable to control my steps. I stand before the girl. I grab her hands and scream Mine! Beep!Beep!Beep!

The sound of my alarm goes off; when did I fall asleep? I groan as I roll out of bed.

That dream, I remember everything; I even remember the chill of the night air. Was that girl Elina? It must be her; why else would I be dreaming about her a day after finding out she dreams about me. Mine? I remember the word, but that was Silas; she is not mine, she will never be mine. I run my hand through my hair as I make the short trip to the bathroom, then stop before the mirror.

Mine!Mine!Mine!

I hear the voices in my head, followed by growling. I close my eyes; I'm in a forest, it's dark, but I can see red eyes. I can see someone walking, Elina? She's walking towards the eyes. What is she doing? Is she stupid? Even I can feel the sinister energy from where I am. Why is she going towards it? I shouldn't care, but something tells me that I need to protect her; I need to make sure she's safe. Without thinking, I start running through the trees, barefooted.

"Elina!"I shout, but she doesn't respond; she keeps walking.

"Elina!"I shout again, but nothing. She's still walking towards that sinister energy. Silas, I shout, I need to move faster, he jumps out, and our bodies become one. I run faster, trying to reach her; come on, I need to reach her. I need to protect. I jump, wrapping my paws around her; she drops to the ground.

" Mine!"The words leave my lips as she looks up at me; confused, I shift back to my human form.

"Xavier," she says, finally waking up from her trance. "Where are we? Why are we here?" 

"I don't…" I gasp for air and open my eyes. I'm back in my bathroom, this time on the floor.

"Xavier!" my uncle shouts as I peel myself off the floor. What the hell was that? 

"Xavier!" He calls again.

"I'm taking a shower," I explain.

"You were growling; everything okay?"

"Can't a man growl in his own house?" he pauses for a moment. 

"Okay, get dressed, or you'll be late for school."

"Uncle…"

"Yes…"

" Nevermind." I lean back against the sink. I was about to ask him if I am linked to that witch, but he will probably lie to me. She's probably cursed me while I was with her yesterday. I must speak to her today; a witch will not fool me. If she believes a dream will make me desire her as my mate, she is in for a surprise.

" Want to be my mate? Over my dead body."